NBA Basketball
2012-12-31 - Brooklyn Nets at San Antonio Spurs
A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown
United States: NBA Basketball
Monday 31 December 2012 - Tip Off 7pm
Midnight (British Time)
Preview
The San Antonio Spurs (24-8) snapped their road woes with a convincing win at Dallas last night and now they get the chance to return home where they have been virtually unbeatable so far this season. A visit from the Brooklyn Nets (16-14) is a real chance for the Spurs to end 2012 with another convincing win and keep the fans positive for another potential run at the NBA Championship.
Brooklyn fired Avery Johnson last week and they remain unbeaten in the 2 games that Interim Head Coach PJ Carlesimo has coached. However, beating Cleveland and Charlotte is not even close to the same level of competition that the Nets will be facing in San Antonio.
The Nets will look to Brook Lopez to continue his recent hot streak- the Center is averaging 27.3 points per game in his last 3 contests and he at least will give Brooklyn the presence to make life a little tougher for San Antonio.
However, Lopez has scored just 24 points in his last 2 games against the Spurs and he has been restricted to under 35% from the field in those games.
San Antonio should be plenty confident as they have won 8 in a row at home and they have won their last 4 games by an average of 22.2 points per game. Last night they crushed Dallas on the road and had a big enough lead that they were able to rest their starters and give their other players some time on the court down the stretch.
Head to Head
San Antonio have dominated the Nets in recent games and they have beaten them 9 times in a row at home.
In fact, the Spurs have a 17-1 record in the last 18 in this series including a 14 point win on the road earlier this season.
The Spurs have won 4 of their last 5 at home against the Nets by double-digits.
Prediction
Playing back to back nights is a tough ask for any team, particularly a veteran ladled squad like the San Antonio Spurs.
However, I think they have had enough rest with a big lead at Dallas last night and they have been playing some very good basketball in recent games. They are also facing a Brooklyn Nets team that is searching for an identity and I think San Antonio expose that here.
They have dominated the recent games in the series and I like the Spurs to cover two nights in a row.
The Pick :
San Antonio Spurs 102-90 Brooklyn Nets
BEST BETTING TIP :
I'll back the San Antonio Spurs - 9 Points @ 2.00
